Regulation 19 Rutland Local Plan
Historic and Cultural Environment
What will this policy do?
Heritage assets play an important part in the local character and identity of the County. National policy for heritage is prescriptive and requires the protection and enhancement of heritage assets and their settings. There is no need to repeat national policy in the Local Plan so policy EN12 sets out how national policy will be implemented in Rutland; it establishes what supporting evidence will be required and how development proposals are expected to be designed and developed to take heritage assets, and non-designated heritage assets, into account and sets out support for appropriate renewable energy proposals involving heritage assets.
Policy EN12 - The historic and cultural environment Comment
All development proposals, projects and activities will be expected to protect, conserve and where possible, seek opportunities to enhance heritage assets and their settings, maintain local distinctiveness and the character of identified features.
Development should also respect the historic landscape character and contribute to its conservation, enhancement or restoration, or the creation of appropriate new features.
Development proposals affecting or likely to affect any heritage asset, or non-designated heritage asset, or its setting will be expected to demonstrate an understanding of the significance of the asset and/or its setting by describing it in sufficient detail to determine its historic, archaeological, or architectural interest to a level proportionate with its importance. A Historic Impact Assessment may be required to support proposals which affect heritage assets and their setting.
As a minimum this should be through reference to the Historic Environment Record or by a desktop analysis and reference to other relevant sources of information, which may include landscape character and historic landscape character appraisals, conservation area appraisals and management plans.
Desk based and/or field evaluations may be required to identify and determine the nature of the asset, describe the significance of the asset and its setting and any potential impacts resulting from the proposed development, as well as to inform the identification of appropriate avoidance and/or mitigation measures required to minimise impacts to an acceptable level (appropriate to their significance).
Locally sourced, sustainable, building and roofing materials should be used in the repair and maintenance of historic buildings and structures where appropriate.
The adaptive re-use of redundant or functionally obsolete listed buildings or important buildings will be supported where this does not harm their essential character.
Appropriate proposals for energy efficient and renewable energy measures for historic buildings, which adequately safeguard their heritage significance, will be permitted.
Why is this policy needed?
One of the core land use principles established in the NPPF is that planning should conserve heritage assets in a manner appropriate to their significance so that they can be enjoyed for their contribution to the quality of life of this and future generations. The guidance is set out in the NPPF (paragraphs 188-208).
Heritage assets include designated assets that are protected under relevant legislation and other non-designated features that have been identified locally, as set out below:
Designated assets:
- listed buildings;
- scheduled monuments;
- registered parks and gardens;
- conservation areas.
Non-designated assets:
- areas of archaeological interest;
- buildings of local importance;
- open spaces;
- parkland;
- other features of importance to the historic environment identified in the Historic Environment Record
These heritage assets play an important part in the local character and identity of the County.
Rutland has a rich built and historic environment with many attractive stone-built villages and two historic town centres that provide a distinctive local character to the area. There are 34 designated Conservation Areas, 16 Article 4 Directions and approximately 1,650 listed buildings that are afforded statutory protection and two Registered Parks and Gardens at Burley Park and Exton Park.
It is important that both designated and non-designated heritage assets are recognised and protected and wherever practical enhanced by development. A list of designated heritage assets in Rutland is shown in Appendix 4. There is an online register of all listed buildings on the Historic England website: https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/
Scheduled monuments, Registered Parks and Gardens and Conservation Areas are shown on the Policies Map, they are also available online on our Environmental Constraints interactive map.
The Historic Environment Record is a comprehensive database of historic buildings and areas of archaeological interest in Rutland that is maintained on behalf of the Council by Leicestershire County Council, and this should be consulted in order to establish whether development proposals are likely to affect heritage assets.
There is also a range of other information including the Leicestershire, Leicester and Rutland Historic Landscape Characterisation Project that should be consulted as appropriate in order to establish any potential impacts on the historic environment.
Supporting Evidence
National Planning Policy Framework 2023
Conservation Areas Appraisals
Historic England Guide – The Historic Environment in Local Plans
